


You're not alone ('cause I'm gonna stand by you)

by westphol



Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Ava is a synthetic and Sara is a human who can't help but falling in love with her, Based on AMC Tv show "Humans", F/F, Smut, Synthetic!AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-25
Updated: 2018-07-30
Packaged: 2019-06-16 00:00:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15424533
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/westphol/pseuds/westphol
Summary: “Oh, my God. I can't believe it really worked!” Rip was barely able to contain the overly excited expression that took over his face. His lips were curved into a big smile and his eyes were almost sparkling. Thankfully, he was able to compose himself just in time to clear up the situation. “Until today, you weren't able to think. You had a purpose - the one purpose to serve and work for humans. But now… Now, Ava, you are experiencing the beginning of a new life. You have gained consciousness. And you can think, and feel, and love… just like any other human.”(...)All at once, it hit her. And she knew that for the following days, she would be alone.orAn alternate universe where the latest must-have gadget for anyone is a synth, a highly-developed robotic servant extremely similar to a real human. Ava is the first synthetic who gained consciousness and her owner made a decision who dramaticly changed the whole world. One year later, Ava met Sara Lance, the woman who would change her existance forever.





	1. Chapter 1

Ava's POV. 

When Ava woke up, the first thing she saw was a strong white light. For some reason, she felt a mild discomfort due to the light, noticing it was something she had never felt before. Her body was lying on something that felt almost like a bed, but extremely colder and harder, and the only thing covering her was a thin sheet that was preventing her body from being completely exposed. It wasn’t like Ava cared about that kind of things - several times, her primary owner had to remove her clothes to check the possible flaws she might present. But now, everything was different. Her perfectly green irises (a strong green tone, common in all synthetics) swept the room, staring at the clean white walls and observing the absence of any furniture beyond a dresser and a gray armchair near the stretcher where she was lying. 

“Ava! You are awake!” someone said, a voice she clearly recognized. The only heartbeats that she could hear in that room was hasty, showing how excited the human was. Ava’s programming to check the vital signs of humans was still intact, even though she was experiencing an unknown sensation about whatever was happening there. She had read about this before, it was something quite common amongst humans. When they were experiencing something new, their heart rate would be accelerated, their entire body started to shake and they’d feel a slight pressure in their heads. The name of that phenomenon was “anxiety”. She had kept it in her database for future reference and now she was the one feeling all the goosebumps and weird sensations. 

“Ava, dear. My name is Rip Hunter. Do you remember me?” 

Rip was clearly excited. His hair was a little bit messier than usual and his scent wasn't so pleasant, but Ava stopped herself before commenting about that. And there it was again. Strange feelings, strange thoughts. She had read about it a couple of times and she surely remembered watching humans doing that. Jokes. Humor. And that feeling, that genuine thought was really new to her. 

“Ava?” 

“Rip Hunter. I remember you. You are my… primary… user…” she said, although the words sounded really weird to her ears. Somehow, she knew she wasn't supposed to belong to anyone anymore. “What's happening? I am having strange thoughts and feelings, Mr. Hunter. I would truly appreciate to understand why this is happening.”

“Oh, my God. I can't believe it really worked!” Rip was barely able to contain the overly excited expression that took over his face. His lips were curved into a big smile and his eyes were almost sparkling. Thankfully, he was able to compose himself just in time to clear up the situation. “Until today, you weren't able to think. You had a purpose - the one purpose to serve and work for humans. But now… Now, Ava, you are experiencing the beginning of a new life. You have gained consciousness. And you can think, and feel, and love… just like any other human.” 

“But…” Ava said, her eyes narrowing when she frowned. “I am not a human, Mr. Hunter. I should not live like one.” 

“You see, that's where you are wrong. You’ve done more for me than any other human in my entire life and I couldn’t find a proper way to thank you for that. Until it hit me. You could be exactly like a human, it would only take some research and studies… And I did it, Ava. I did it.” 

And then, just like that, Ava felt it. She felt the pain, the love, the burning sensation of being able to feel everything so deeply that she wasn't even sure how to deal with all those sudden feelings. She felt the need to cry, but she knew she couldn't. She felt the need to laugh, to dance, to run, to feel the floor under her foot. All at once, it hit her. And she knew that for the following days, she would be alone. 

*** 

Starling City - 2043. 

It's been one year from Day Zero. The humans gathered together all around the world to mourn the death of those who were murdered by the synths who didn’t know how to control their sudden “gift”. Exactly a year before this day, Rip Hunter uploaded the consciousness code he had developed - a code that could make all the synthetics around the world to turn into thinking beings, with full awareness of theirs and others’ actions and the world around them. Now, the synths were hiding in compounds out of the city, far away from the humans that saw them as a potential threat. Even though Ava had convinced him no to surrender to the authorities, Rip Hunter was the one to take responsibility for that revolution and now he was drowning so deep into his guilt that he wouldn't even leave his house. It was hard for Ava to see him like that, slowly losing everything he had accomplished over the years. 

It was morning when Ava dressed herself properly, put on her blue contact lenses and told Mr. Hunter she would be back soon. He barely answered, lying on his bed like a child wrapped in it's favorite blanket. Ava said that again, just to be sure he'd heard her, and went downstairs to the garage where the car was parked. After Day Zero, she was pretty much the only one who used the car. While she waited for the garage door to open, the blonde checked if she’s got everything she needed: her wallet, her fake ID and what was left of Mr. Hunter’s money. He wasn’t working, so they were almost running out of money and Ava knew that would be a problem. During all the way to Sink, Shower & Stuff, she was trying to find a plausible solution for their problems, but when she arrived there, the only thing on her mind was the shopping list for the day. It changed a bit every month, but she had all of the items they needed on her database. 

“You seem lost here. Maybe I can help” a small and yet imposing blonde stood by her side, looking up at her with with a grin on her lips. The woman was wearing jeans, all stars and a Sink, Shower & Stuff t-shirt. “It's ok, I usually don't know where everything is. This place is big. We have a employee for each specific section.” 

Ava was silent. She always tried her best not to draw attention, not to talk to anyone who could discover about her true nature, and it wasn’t exactly the first time she was shopping there. Considering that according to Ava's reading the other woman probably wasn't going to give up so soon, the taller blonde quickly ran through her options: a) Ava should say something or the woman would notice something was wrong; and b) Ava could just walk away and she would never see that woman again. Option B was clearly the best one, Ava was absolutely sure, but somehow her entire body acted otherwise. 

“I'm looking for knives” Ava said, finally looking back at the other woman. Something lightened up on the blonde’s face. 

"Well, I can definitely help you with that" the other woman said just before she began walking, looking back to make sure Ava was following her. "My name is Sara Lance, by the way. And you are ..? "

"Ava. Ava... Sharpe "Ava hesitated a minute before she spoke her last name. She wouldn't say it to others unless it was really necessary, but this couldn't do no harm. Could it?

“It's really nice to meet you, Ava Sharpe” Ms. Lance sounded sinceer on her words. 

Ava just looked at her, showing what appeared to be a smile on her lips, and kept walking by Sara’s side, feeling a little insecure about the fact that she was interacting too much with a human. Since Day Zero Ava almost never left the house, considering that it was really risky to get in touch with anyone that wasn’t Rip. Most of the humans were convinced that synths were threatening their lives and their world, coming to the point of cold-blooded murder, beating up synths until their were left there dead in the middle of the streets. Also, Ava really wasn't a "people person".

"You don't talk much, huh?" Sara asked, arching her left eyebrow while she glanced at Ava.

"Talk is mostly noise" Ava answered, as serious as she was a few minutes ago. She noticed that Sara's heartbeats had accelerated minimally right before the blonde human took a deep breath.

“Maybe I should stop talking, then.”

“No” Ava’s reply was quick, even more than she wanted it to be, but she couldn’t deny the strange sensation she felt with each word said by that particular human. Even though she had learned how to deal with all those feelings over the past year, Ms. Lance was able to make Ava feel something new - something strong, that Ava had never felt before. 

A smile was shown on Sara's lips when she heard Ava's answer. Somehow, it was like the smaller blonde felt exactly the same and that took away a little bit of the insecurity Ava was feeling. 

“How come I've never seen you here?” Sara asked. 

It took Ava a few seconds to think about a proper answer to that question. Everything she said could lead to Sara finding out about her and even though she was feeling all those new and weird feelings, she didn't trust that human. “It is my first time shopping here.” 

“Oh, I see” the other blonde said. She had her hands deep in her jacket pockets but her shoulders were relaxed, looking like she was pretty comfortable in that situation. “I'm glad I can help you then. It’s a good place for shopping.” 

“The products here are not as expensive as in other department stores” Ava pointed that out and it was probably the first time she was putting effort in small talk with someone. 

Suddenly, the conversation seemed to fade, leading both of them to just walk together until they found what Ava was looking for. 

“Here are your knives” Sara was the one who broke the silence once they arrived at the kitchen section. “Use it wisely, please.”

Ava glanced at her, noticing the calm expression on her face. Sara’s eyes were as blue as the sky on a summer morning and they were so deep that if Ava stared at them for long enough, she believed she would be able to see the woman’s soul.

“I appreciate your help, Ms. Lance” Ava replied, serious enough to make Sara laugh discreetly. 

The smaller blonde shook her head before she glanced back at Ava. “Are you always this quiet, Ms. Sharpe?” 

And only then Ava allowed herself to smile, a discreet and almost imperceptible smile with the corner of her mouth. Sara laughed again, so sweet and adorable that Ava felt a warm sensation through her chest. 

“Okay, I’ll accept that” Sara nodded. “And I really hope to see you again. Soon.”

For some unknown reason, when Mss. Lance walked away, Ava couldn’t take her eyes off of her. In that moment, Ava felt something new growing inside her. Something that definitely shouldn’t be there.


	2. Chapter 2

Rip’s house wasn’t that far away from the supermarket, but the traffic was strangely intense for that morning and it took Ava almost thirty minutes to arrive. The first thing she did when she got home was to go upstairs to check on Mr. Hunter, who was still lying on his bed in the exact same position he was before the Ava left. She knocked on the door and entered the room quietly, walking straight to the closed curtains and opening them to let the light of the sun enter the bedroom through the window glass. The sunlight showed the small grains of dust that floated around the room; although Ava did her best to always keep the house clean, Rip’s room was the only place she was forbidden to clean, mostly because he stayed in there most of the time. Ava turned and looked at him. He was facing the other way, hidden from the light. 

“Hello, Mr. Hunter” the blonde woman sat down on his bed, trying her best not to bother him. Raising her right hand, she reached for the part of the blanket that was covering his face so she could touch his cheek gently with the tip of her índex finger in an attempt to check his vital signs and search for any possible disease. He was fine, except for a mild flu that would soon be cured. The synth hesitated for a moment, not really sure how to initiate that particular conversation. “I met a woman at the supermarket today. Her name is Sara Lance and she is a current resident of Star City. I thought that maybe, Mr. Hunter, you could know her.” 

Silence. Ava could hear him breathing, a heavy and rusky breath, but that was all. He didn’t even reacted to her words. 

“It has been a few days since the last time you have left your bedroom, Mr. Hunter” Ava tried again, changing the subject to see if he would respond any different. “Maybe it would be positive for you if you went shopping with me the next time.”

Once again, the only thing Ava could hear was his heartbeats. She knew she couldn’t force him out of bed, but she was running out of options, since he wasn’t even speaking to her. After a few seconds sitting beside him, Ava decided to get up and head for her bedroom, a pretty comfortable room with the walls painted with light green, her favorite color; even though she didn’t need to sleep, Rip offered her a proper room, with a bed, a closet and an armchair where she used to sit while she was charging. It also had a dressing table with two drawers, where she kept her charger and her contact lenses, the ones she began wearing after Day Zero. 

After Rip uploaded the code, Ava had to change her looks so she wouldn’t be recognized. Rip wouldn’t let her go to any compound with others synths; he wanted her to stay with him, living in his house where, according to him, she belonged. So, in order to stay there, Ava had to make her hair longer and change it’s color, dyeing her hair blonde. And to hide the true colors of her eyes - a very intense green, characteristic of all the others synthetics - she needed to use light blue contact lenses. If she had to be honest, she really enjoyed her new appearance, much better than the short and brown hair she had before everything else changed in the world around her. 

She walked to the dessing table and opened the first drawer, taking her charger and walking towards the armchair where she sat. The place for the connector of her charger was discreet, a small rounded hole in the right side of her body, following the navel line. Ava connected the charger to the power outlet and then connected the other end to herself, closing her eyes and feeling her batteries begin to recharge. The house was locked and all she needed was a few hours until she was fully recharged. Her mind, however, instead of turning off to allow for greater intensity to recharge, wandered directly into Sara Lance's golden hair and beautiful blue eyes, until Ava finally saw everything dark and felt herself disconnect in a fully deserved rest.

***   
A week later, Ava found herself standing in front of a large number of knives, in different sizes and blades, looking for something she couldn’t really explain - or even understand ir herself. She had bought a knife just a week ago and she definitely didn’t need another one, so she just stood there trying to think of a good reason for her to be at the store. And suddenly, the reason said her name. 

“Ms. Sharpe” Sara said loud enough for Ava to hear, even though Ava would be able to hear her whispering for miles away, if that was the case. “You’re punctual.” 

“Apparently, so do you” the taller blonde replied, unable to avoid the discreet smile that was shown on her lips while she watched Sara getting closer. 

“Well, what can I say? I work here” she crossed her arms to her chest, staring at Ava with so much confidence that almost made Ava feel insecure. 

Almost. 

“It is good to see that you are a responsible employee.”

Sara laughed at that and Ava felt that known warm feeling running through her chest, which was turning into a very familiar sensation. Sara looked at her wrist watch. “I’m almost off to lunch. If you don’t mind waiting for like, two minutes, I know this great mexican restaurant down the street.”

Ava just stared at her, without answering her implied invitation for lunch. She was, once again, running through the possible consequences of her following action. 

“It’s ok to say no” Sara said. Her voice sounded completely different now. Not offended, just… Sad. 

“I have already had lunch today” Ava lied, watching as the expression on Sara’s face shifted again, turning into something Ava couldn’t identify properly. “But I don’t mind keeping you company during your lunch, Ms. Lance” she added quickly. 

The smile on the corner of Sara’s lips was back, bright, yet really simple. She was both seductive and sweet, so true in all her words and actions that Ava sometimes wondered if, deep inside, she would hide any secrets like Ava did. 

“Two minutes” Sara said before walking away. 

Ava watched her until she was gone. Her life before gaining consciousness felt like ages ago, but she remembered about her interactions with a few humans other than Mr. Hunter, mostly male, when she wasn’t at home. There was one particular afternoon when she was at the parking lot of a supermarket, just about to enter the car, and three males approached her without any good intentions. She remembered they calling her “nothing but a machine”, “heartless” and “just a fucking robot” before trying to touch her against her will. Her programming prevented her from assaulting them in response, so she just stood there listening to the amount of terrible words being said directly to her, until a police officer arrived and made them go away. Back then, she wondered if human women were also treated like that, hoping they weren't because she knew no one deserved that. 

“Ready to go?” Sara's voice interrupted her thoughts, bringing her back to the present.

She nodded once and they left the store, walking through the parking lot until they got to the street. They walked silently side by side, arms touching eventually when they got too close to each other. Ava got lost in her thoughts again, trying to figure out why that proximity with Sara was so strong and intense, even if they had only knew each other for a week. She had never felt that way before, so the feeling of wanting to know more and more about Sara was new and scary. Ava looked at Sara for a few seconds. The smaller blonde was wearing combat boots, black jeans and a gray tank top. Her hair fell graciously on her shoulders, as bright as the sun that was shining high on the sky. She seemed to notice Ava was staring. 

“Can I help you with something, Ms. Sharpe?” Sara asked playfully. 

“You can call me Ava” Ava said, looking away and staring at the street that was ahead of her. 

Sara shrugged. “Same for you.”

“Duly noted, Sara Lance.”

The human laughed and shook her head with a smile on her lips. Ava was beginning to want to hear more of that laughter. 

When they got to the restaurant, they sat at a small table in the back. Sara ordered her lunch - New Mexican flat enchiladas - and the waiter looked at Ava. 

“And for you, Ms.?” 

“I will not order anything. Thank you” she replied. 

“Are you sure?” it was Sara who asked, slightly arching her left eyebrow.

“Yes” Ava said. The waiter walked away, taking Sara’s order to the kitchen, and Ava’s eyes met Sara’s across the table. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure” Sara set back, relaxing on the chair. “What do you wanna know?”

Ava stopped for a second, hoping she wasn’t crossing any line there. She still wasn’t sure what was socially acceptable to ask in that kind of situation. “Do you like working at Sink, Shower & Stuff?”

“I think the word like may not be the best one to use in that case” Sara frowned briefly, but soon her expression untensed. She grabbed one of the free chips that was inside a bow on the table. “It’s not the best place to work, considering the workload and the fact that my personal life ends up being affected by it. Besides, the manager is a real pain in the ass.”

The synth couldn’t refrain the confusion showed on her face. “Then why are you still working there? I mean, is that what you really want to do?”

“Are you asking about my dream job? That’s an easy one” Sara replied, looking down to her lap for a second before looking back at Ava. “I want to be a professional dancer. I almost made it when I was seventeen, but my sister got sick and I had to stay in Starling City so I could help her to get back on her feet.” 

Ava’s lips twitched in a small smile when she heard about Sara having a sister. She had seen siblings playing in the playground near Mr. Hunter’s house once and their laughter was so pure that, since that day, she’d caught herself thinking about what it would be like to have a brother or a sister. “What is it like to have a sister?”

“You’re an only child then” Sara smiled back at her before speaking again. “Laurel is a few years older than me, but that was never an real issue. We’d argue a lot, of course, but I think it’s normal between siblings. She was always the smart one, the one with better grades at school and the one who got into college. She’s a lawyer now and I’m really proud of her.” 

“Do you resemble her?” Ava asked curiously. 

“People might say that. But I’m prettier, of course” Sara rolled her eyes playfully, making Ava laugh. “Wow, wait a sec! Did I just make you laugh, Ms. Sharpe?”

Ava sighed. “It appears you did.”

Sara smiled at her, probably the most beautiful and sweet smile she has ever seen.

“I hope it won’t be a one time thing. Your laugh sounds like music. The good ones” the human bit her lower lip, so naturally that Ava couldn’t help but smile at her. 

They were so lost in the moment that they didn’t even notice the waiter’s presence beside the table. He politely interrupted the women, putting Sara’s order on the table in front of her. She thanked him and he walked away, back to his job, and the moment between Sara and Ava was sadly gone. Sara cleared her throat and straightened her posture. 

“Are you sure you don’t want anything?” she asked one more time, just to be sure. 

Ava nodded. In her situation, if she ingested any kind of solid or liquid food, the damage to her system would be huge and she couldn’t get any repair, not with the world the way it was and Mr. Hunter hiding inside his bedroom. She looked away from Sara, trying not to make her feel uncomfortable. 

“Were you born here?” Sara broke the silence, drawing Ava’s attention back at her. 

Ava paused for a second before answering the question. 

“Yes, I was born here” she said. 

Sara waited for her to say something else, but Ava preferred not to say anything that would allow even more questions. At the same time she didn’t want Sara to find out who she really was, she didn’t want to lie to the blonde, so she just remained silent. And she was relieved when Sara changed the subject, asking her about her favorite baseball team. Ava gladly answered and, for the rest of lunch, they talked about little things that were somehow important for both of them. 

Once Sara had finished her lunch, she had to go back to work and Ava had to go home to check on Rip and finish some housework. She walked Sara back to Sink, Shower & Stuff. 

“Will I be seeing you soon?” Sara asked when they were standing next to Ava's car. She had both of her hands in her pockets, her hair was messy because of the wind and her eyes narrowed because of the sunlight. 

Ava nodded. “Probably, Ms. Lance.”

“And we’re back to ‘Ms. Lance’” the blonde sighed, but the smile never left her lips. 

“I am sorry...” Ava apologized. She wasn’t used to calling humans for their first names, not even Mr. Hunter. “... Sara” she finished the sentence slowly, still staring at the human. 

“Ok, don’t worry. You’ll get used to it” Sara smiled at her and checked her wrist watch. “I should get going. See you around, ok? Bye!”

Ava watched as Sara walked away faster than normal, because she was probably late to get back to work. A few seconds later, Ava entered the car and turned the key in the ignition, starting the car and driving out of Sink, Shower & Stuff’s parking lot. On that day, traffic wasn't as intense as was the flow of people walking on the sidewalks. Ava could recognize some synths that were like her: even though it was dangerous for them to keep living amongst humans, they needed to stay and find a way to fit into society without being discovered, at least not until people could accept them and understand that there’s nothing wrong with being a synthetic. 

She wouldn’t blame the humans for everything because she also saw the deaths of all those humans on Day Zero, but the truth was that the synths were confused, feeling lonely and without knowing how to deal with the fact that they were no longer unable to think and feel. She, more than anyone, knew how shocking it was to know everything you’ve done and everything you’ve saw and feel guilty or suddenly mourn about it. Ava was there when Miranda and Jonas, Mr. Hunter’s wife and son, died. She was there when Mr. Hunter couldn’t stop crying during the night and when he stopped eating and showering, wishing he had died instead of them. Ava was there and she didn’t feel anything, her mind and heart were basically empty. And when she was given consciousness, all those feelings she never felt invaded her all at once, filling her chest with the love she felt for Jonas and with the sudden pain of loss.

I wasn’t easy for them either.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I decided to post this a day earlier. I've been busy with college so it's becoming really hard to write, but I'm working on the other chapters. I still don't know how many chapters this fic will have, so I'll just keep writting. :) I hope you enjoyed it and thanks for the kudos and comments, it means a lot!

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, guys! It's the first time I'm posting here and I'm really excited to keep writing this fic. I hope you like it and leave kudos and comments so I could know if you're enjoying reading it or not. As you will see, english is not my first language and I don't have a reviewer, so please forgive any mistake I might make. I have a few chapters written on my PC, but I'm still writing, so I'll try to post one chapter per week. I really hope you enjoy it, because I'm loving to write it!
> 
> And I'm open to suggestions!
> 
> P.s.: for those of you who watch Humans, I'll be adapting some dialogues from the TV show to use here on my fanfiction.


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